GARUDA PURAAN

INTRODUCTION
LORD VISHNU'S INCARNATIONS Sutji once reached Naimisharanya in course of his pilgrimage. There he found numerous sages engaged in austerities and penance. All of them were delighted to find Sutji in their midst and considered it as a God sent opportunity to get their doubts related with religious topics cleared. Sage Shaunak was also present there and he asked Sutji, O revered sage! Who is the creator of this world? Who nurtures it and who annihilates it in the end? How can one realize the supreme Almighty? How many incarnations the Almighty has taken till now? Please enlighten us on all these things, which are shrouded in mystery. Sutji replied, I am going to reveal to you the contents of Garuda Puraan, which contains the divine tales of Lord Vishnu. This particular Puraan is named after Garuda because he was the one who first narrated these tales to sage Kashyap. Kashyap subsequently narrated them to sage Vyas. I came to know about these divine tales from sage Vyas. Lord Vishnu is the supreme almighty and the source of all creations. He is the nurturer of this world and the annihilator as well. Though he is beyond the bondage of birth and death yet he takes incarnations to protect the world from the tyranny of sinners. His first incarnation was in the form of the eternal adolescent Sanat kumar and others who were all celibates and extremely virtuous. Lord Vishnu took his second incarnation in the form of a boar (Varah) to protect the Earth from the mighty demon named Hiranyaksha, who had abducted her to Patal loka (Nether world). In his third incarnation as Narad, he propagated the virtues of 'nishkaam karma' (performing one's duties without bothering about the results). In his fourth incarnation as NarNarayan, he performed arduous austerities for the protection and propagation of Dharma or religiousness. Lord Vishnu's fifth incarnation was as Kapil, which he took to protect the Saankhya shashtra, which was on the verge of becoming extinct. He took his sixth incarnation in the house of Atri and Anusuya as Dattatreya with the specific objective of propagating the most secret Brahma vidya to worthy people. His disciples included virtuous souls like Prahalad and others. Lord Vishnu took his seventh incarnation as the son of Ruchi Prajapati and Aakuti and was known as Yagya deva. His eighth incarnation was as Rishabh deva -the son of sage Naabhi and Merudevi. In this incarnation he established the norms for Grihashtha ashram, which later on became the guidelines for every householders. Lord Vishnu took his ninth incarnation as Prithu and 'milked'(extracted) various nutrients (cereals, pulses etc.) from the Earth who had disguised herself as a cow and thus protected the populace from getting starved to death.

In his tenth incarnation as Matsya (fish), he protected the life of Vaivaswat Manu, who would not have survived otherwise. Lord Vishnu took his eleventh incarnation in the form of a tortoise (kurma) and held the Mandarachal mountain on his back at the time when the ocean was being churned. His twelfth incarnation was as Dhanvantari and thirteenth as the most enchanting beauty- Mohini to retrieve the ambrosia pot from the possession of the demons. He subsequently distributed it among the deities as the result of which they became immortal. In his fourteenth incarnation, Lord Vishnu manifested himself as 'Narasimha' (partly human and partly lion) and to protect his devotee Prahlad, killed the wicked demon Hiranyakashipu by tearing apart his abdomen with his sharp claws. His fifteenth incarnation was as Vaman (dwarf) in which he demanded all the three worlds from Bali-the most benevolent demon king and then sent him to Patal loka. In his sixteenth incarnation as Parshuram, he wiped out the whole caste of kshatriyas from the face of the earth for twenty-one times, as they had all become immoral. In his seventeenth incarnation, he was born as Vyas to Parasara and Satyavati and accomplished his mission of propagating the knowledge of Vedas by categorizing them into four parts. In his eighteenth incarnation he manifested himself as Sri Ram. His nineteenth incarnation was as Krishna and his twentieth incarnation as Balram. He will take his twenty-first incarnation as Buddha to bring the mankind back to virtuous path by preaching against the rituals and proving that it is not proper for a seeker to get bound by them. Lord Vishnu would take incarnation as Kalki and will be born to a Brahmin named Vishnuyasha to liberate the earth from the sinners. HOW GARUDA PURAAN WAS PROPAGATED On being asked by the sages as to how did he come to know about the contents of Garuda Puraan, Sutji told them I had oncegone to Badrikashram, where I met sage Vyas. I requested him to enlighten me on various spiritual matters to which he agreed saying that he was going to narrate the tales of Garuda Puraana which was first told by Lord Brahma to Narad, Daksha Prajapati and myself. Sage Vyas then told Sutji how once he along with Narad, Daksha and Bhrigu had gone to Brahmaloka to see Lord Brahma. After reaching there, all three of them requested Lord Brahma to shed light on the essence of the real knowledge. Lord Brahma revealed to them that Garuda Puraan contained the essence of all the scriptures and Lord Vishnu himself had narrated its divine tales to him (Brahma). Describing the incident when Lord Vishnu had told the divine tales of Garuda Puraan to him as well as Shiva, Lord Brahma said, I once went to Kailash mountain accompanied by Indra and other deities. We found Shiva engrossed in his meditation. We were amazed and asked him as to who was he meditating upon. Lord Shiva told us that he was meditating upon the omnipresent, omniscient and the omnipotent Vishnu- in whom the entire universe exists. Lord Shiva

also revealed to us that this was all he knew of Vishnu's power and also that if we wanted to know more about him then we will have to ask Lord Vishnu himself. So, all of us including Shiva went to Vishnu loka and requested Lord Vishnu to clear our doubts on various topics which confused us. Lord Vishnu gave a long discourse covering all the major religious topics. LORD VISHNU REVEALS HIS OMNIPOTENT NATURE Dwelling on length about his power, Lord Vishnu told Shiva, O Rudra! I am the lord of all the deities. I am the one who controls each and every event that occurs in the Universe. I am the one whom mortals worship with the desire of attaining salvation. The universe would have ceased to exist but for me. I am the creator, the nurturer as well as the supreme annihilator. I manifest myself in the sacred mantras as well as their meanings. People meditate on me. Matter is nothing but a medium through which I manifest myself. LORD VISHNU BLESSES GARUDA Describing how Garuda pleased him with his deep devotion, Lord Vishnu said, During ancient times, Garuda once did an austere penance to please me. I appeared before him and expressed my willingness to fulfill anything that he wished for. Garuda wanted to liberate his mother, Vinta from the slavery of Kadru, the mother of serpents. He also wanted to avenge his mother's humiliation at their hands. He also expressed his desire of becoming immortal by having a Puraana credited to his name and finally he requested me to give him the privilege of becoming my mount. I blessed Garuda, as a result of which all his wishes were fulfilled. Once, on being requested by sage Kashyap, Garuda narrated the divine tales of Garuda Puraan to him. Sage Kashyap had once brought back a dead tree back to life with the help of Garudi Vidya- a sacred mantra found in Garuda Puraan. Similarly, Garuda too had brought numerous dead creatures back to life with the help of same mantra. THE BEGINNING OF CREATION Lord Shiva requested Vishnu to shed light on different topics like Sarga (world), Pratisarga, Vansh (dynasties), Manvantar (fourteenth part of Brahma's day) and Vanshanucharit (genealogy). Lord Vishnu replied, O Rudra! Lord Vasudeva in his incarnation of Nara-Narayan performs his responsibilities of the creator, protector as well as the annihilator. Each particle that is found in this universe whether perceptible or imperceptible is nothing but the medium through which the Almighty makes his presence felt. In the beginning of the creation, on account of HIS will subtle matter of nature (imperceptible) came into being. HE is the one to whom 'Atma' or 'Purush' owe its existence. Subsequently, intelligence or 'Buddhi' manifested itself from the subtle matter of nature, mind or 'Mun' from intelligence, space or 'Aakash' from mind, air or 'Vayu' from Space, Fire or 'Teja' from air, water from 'Teja' and finally the earth manifested itself from water.

O Rudra! Then came into existence an enormous sized egg. I dwell within that egg and so do all the other deities. In fact, the whole universe is situated within that egg. The almighty Vishnu creates in the form of Brahma, nurtures in the form of Vishnu and annihilates in the form of Shiva at the end of each kalpa. The creations of the almighty are known as 'Sargas'. First of all, the almighty creates the Mahat tatva, which symbolizes his gross quality. Since it was his first creation therefore it was called the first Sarga. The second Sarga consisted of the creation of the Panch-Tanmatras or the five basic elements -- Earth (Prithvi), Water (Jala), Fire (Teja), Air (Vayu) and Sound (Shabda). These five basic elements are the stuff from which matter is made. The third Sarga namely Vaikarik sarga comprising the creation of all the sense organs and the organs of the actions, is basically intelligence oriented, because the sense organs can not function without intelligence. All these above mentioned three sargas come under the category of Prakrit sarga or natural creation. The fourth sarga is known as Mukhya sarga or the main creation and consisted of immovable things like mountains, trees, etc. The fifth Sarga is known as Tiryak sarga and consisted of animals and birds. The sixth sarga comprised the creation of the deities and other celestial beings and hence it is also known as Deva sarga. The seventh sarga comprised the creation of human beings and hence it was called Maanush sarga. The eighth sarga, which is also called Anugrah sarga, consisted of creations that are both 'satvik' (pure) and 'tamasik' (dark) in nature. The ninth sarga is called Kaumar sarga. Lord Brahma commenced his creation of supreme entities by expressing his will resulting into the manifestation of all the ten Manasputras. Subsequently, Lord Brahma created different other entities like deities (deva), demons (danav), ancestors (pitra) and human-beings (manushya). He then created the Ashuras from his thighs and subsequently abandoned his body. The dark qualities emanating from the body resulted into the creation of night, a creation that immensely pleased the demons. Lord Brahma then attained a new physical form, which was pure (satvik) in nature. He created the deities from his mouth and once again abandoned his body resulting into the creation of day this time. All the deities became extremely pleased by this particular creation of Brahma. Once again Lord Brahma attained another form and created the 'pitras' and when he abandoned that body, 'sandhya' (evening) manifested from it. Lord Brahma then attained a form that was 'Rajomaya' in nature and created human beings. His abandoning that particular form resulted into the creation of 'Pratahkaal'(dawn). Subsequently, Lord Brahma created the different species like 'yaksha', 'sarpa', 'Gandharva' and 'Apsaras' and many more creatures from the different parts of his body. All the four Vedas namely Rigveda, Yajurveda, Samveda and Atharvaveda manifested themselves from each of Brahma's four mouths. Similarly, all the four castes such as Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra manifested from Brahma's mouth, arms, thighs and feet respectively.'

THE BEGINNING OF COPULATIVE CREATION Having created Daksha Prajapati and his wife Prasuti from his right and left thumb respectively, Lord Brahma instructed both of them to make their contribution in increasing the population with the help of copulative creation. In course of time, Daksha Prajapati begot numerous daughters all of whom were given in marriage to ten Manasputras. Once, Daksha Prajapati had organized a grand Ashwamedha Yagya to which he had invited all his daughters and son-in-laws except Sati and Rudra. Sati eventually reached her father's place much against the advise of Shiva, who was strictly against going to a place uninvited. Shiva's apprehensions were not unfounded supposition, as Sati was indeed humiliated by Daksha in front of all the esteemed guests. Sati was so deeply hurt by her father's rude behaviour and the manner in which he made fun of her husband that she gave up her life by jumping into the sacrificial fire. When Rudra learnt about Sati's death he cursed Daksha by saying that he would loose his divine status and would be born as a human being in the lineage of Dhruva. In her next birth, Sati was born as the daughter of Himalaya and Mainak. She was once again successful in getting Shiva as her husband by virtue of her deep devotion towards Shiva.' THE DHRUVA DYNASTY Lord Vishnu, continuing with the tales of Garuda Puraan told Shiva, Uttanpad had two wives -- Suruchi and Suniti. From his former wife, he begot a son named Uttam, while Suniti gave birth to Dhruva, who became immortal because of his unflinching devotion in me. Dhruva had a mighty son named 'Shlishta'. Prachinvarhi was Shlishta's son and Dhruva's grandson. Few other prominent personalities coming from the lineage of Dhruva wereUdardhi, Divanjaya, Ripu, Chakshush, Ruru, Anga, Ven etc. Ven was an atheist and was eventually killed by sages for his immoral deeds. Since Ven had no progeny, his death put a question mark on his successor. Sages tried to solve this problem by churning his thighs, which resulted into the emergence of Nishad. But, Nishad went to Vindhyachal to do penance. Seeing their whole effort go in vain, all the sages once again churned Ven's hands. This time Lord Vishnu himself incarnated as Prithu. Prithu was an extremely kind hearted king and cared for his subjects. Once, when his kingdom was experiencing an acute famine, he successfully extracted the essential nutrients from the earth and thus saved his subjects from starvation. Prithu had ten sons prominent among whom were Antardhan, Havirdhan, Prachinvarhi and Praachetas. In course of time Praachetas married Marisha. Just according to the curse of Shiva, Daksha Prajapati was reborn in the clan of Dhruva. His father's name was Praachetas and his mother was Marisha. In the beginning, Daksha Prajapati tried to do creation by merely expressing his will but his efforts went futile because of Shiva's curse. So, he had no option but to take the help of copulative creation and to meet his objective he married Asikni, the daughter of Viran.

In course of time he became the father of one thousand sons, all of whom perished while on their impossible mission of finding out the circumference of the earth. Actually sage Narad had incited all of them to undertake this impossible mission. Daksha though angry did not lose heart and in course of time he once again fathered one thousand sons. Once again, Narad was successful in convincing them to emulate the deeds of their elder brothers. All of them set out on an impossible mission never to return. Now, Daksha's anger crossed all limits and he cursed Narad by saying that he would take birth as a human for inciting his sons' to death. This is the reason why Narad was born as Kashyap's son. In the years to follow, Daksha Prajapati begot sixty beautiful daughters from Asikni among whom he gave away two daughters in marriage to sage Angira, two to sage Krishashva, ten to Dharma, fourteen to sage Kashyap and twentyeight daughters to Chandrama. The names of Krishashva's wives were Supragya and Jaya while Dharma's wives were Arundhati, Vasu, Yami, Lamba, Bhanumati, Marutvati, Sankalpa, Muhurta, Saadhya and Vishva. The names of Kashyap's wives were Aditi, Diti, Danu, Kala, Anayu, Sinhika, Muni, Kadru, Saadhya, Ira, Krodha, Vinta, Surabhi and Khaga. Dharma's wives Vishva and Saadhya gave birth to the Vishvedevas and Saadhyaganas respectively. Similarly, Marutvati gave birth to Marutvaans and Vasu to Vasuganas. Dharma's wife named Bhanu gave birth to twelve Bhanus while Muhurta gave birth to Muhurtaganas. Lamba gave birth to Ghosh while Yami gave birth to Naagvithi. Sankalpa gave birth to Sankalpa. Kashyap's wife Aditi gave birth to twelve Aadityas while Diti gave birth to two sons (demons)- Hiranyakashipu and Hiranyaksha. Diti also had a daughter named Sinhika, who was married to Viprachiti. Hiranyakashipu had four sons Anuhlad, Hlad, Prahlad and Sanhlad. Aayushman, Shibi and Bashkal were the sons of Sanhlad. Prahlad had a mighty son named Virochan who himself had a son named Bali. Bali had one hundred sons in all and Baan was the eldest among them. Hiranyaksha had six sons all of whom were very brave and valiant. Their names were Utkur, Shakuni, Bhutsantapan, Mahanam, Mahabahu and Kaalnaam. Danu had numerous sons who were all very brave - Dwimurdha, Shankar, Ayomukh, Shankushira, Kapil, Shambar, Ekachakra, Mahabahu, Tarak, Mahabal, Swarbhanu, Vrishaparva, Puloma, Mahasur and the mightiest among them-Viprachiti. Puloma and Kalka, both daughters of Vaishwanar were married to sage Kashyap. Kashyap had sixty thousand sons (demons) from both of them. Demons such as Nighat Kavach came from the lineage of Prahlad. Tamra had six daughters and their names were Shuki, Shyeni, Masi, Sugrivi, Shuchi and Gridhika. Shuki gave birth to numerous species of birds like Shuka (Parrot), Uluka (owls) and Kaak(crows). Similarly Shyeni gave birth to Shyen (hawks) and Gridhika to Gridh (vultures). Shuchi was the mother of aquatic birds while Sugrivi gave birth to various animals like, horses, camels, donkeys, etc.' Arun and Garuda were born to Vinta while Sursa and Kadru gave birth to serpents. Krodha gave birth to powerful Pishachas, Surabhi to cows and buffaloes, Era to various vegetation like, creepers and grass, Khaga

to Yakshas and Rakshas, Muni to Apsaras and Arishta gave birth to Gandharvas. Diti gave birth to fourty-nine Marutganas, all of whom are in fact the incarnations of Lord Vishnu.

ASTROLOGY
THE CHARIOTS OF NAVGRAHAS While describing the chariots of all the nine planets, Lord Vishnu told Rudra thus: The chariot of Sun has an unbelievable expanse stretching up to nine thousand yojans. The axle of the chariot is one crore and fifty seven lakh yojans long and wheels are fixed at both its ends. The wheels have six circumferences symbolizing the six main seasons and five spokes symbolizing the five different units of time measurement in them. The chariot of Surya(sun) is pulled by seven horses. These horses symbolize the seven 'chhands' (stanzas used in poetry) - gayatri, vrihati, ushnik, jagati, trishtup, anushtup and pankti The chariot of chandrama (moon) has three wheels in it. It is pulled by ten white horses The color of Mars' chariot is golden and is pulled by horses of dark red color Mercurys chariot is of brown color and is pulled by eight horses of the same color The chariot of Jupiter is made of gold and is pulled by eight horses of yellowish complexion. Jupiter remains in each of the twelve zodiacs for a year Venuss chariot is well escorted by his army. The chariot has a mast on it's top and is pulled by horses that are found on earth Horses pulling the chariot of Saturn are of varicolored The chariot of Rahu is pulled by eight horses, which are of the color of smoke The chariot of Ketu is pulled by eight horses, which are red in color

DESCRIPTION OF YOGAS AND MUHURTAS Giving elaborate description of inauspicious days on which one should not undertake travels or journeys, Lord Vishnu told Shiva Various goddesses (yoginis) dwell in different directions on specific days and one should never set out on journeys on those days. A yogini named Brahmani dwells in the East on Pratipada (first) and navami (ninth) of both the fortnights of each month and nobody should travel on both these dates towards east. Maheshwari dwells in the north on second and ninth of both the fortnights of each month and hence nobody should travel towards north on both these dates. Varahi dwells in the south on the fifth and thirteenth of both the fortnights of each month and hence it is unadvisable to travel towards south

on the above mentioned dates. In the same manner, Indrani dwells in the west on sixth and fourteenth of both the fortnights of each month and therefore nobody should travel in this direction on both the above mentioned dates. While giving names of some auspicious constellations suitable for undertaking journeys, Lord Vishnu said, Constellations like Ashvini, Anuradha, Revati, Mrigashira, Moola, Punarvasu, Pushya, Hasta and Jyeshtha are auspicious for undertaking journeys. Lord Vishnu, giving some specific combinations of days and tithis considered to be inauspicious, said One should never travel on the following inauspicious days: Dwadashi falling on Sunday or Ekadashi falling on Monday or Navami falling on Wednesday or Ashtami falling on Thursday or Saptami falling on Friday and Shashthi falling on Saturday. AMRIT YOGA: It is the most auspicious yoga for commencing any work. The conjunction of a particular day and specific nakshatra constitute this yoga. A few examples of Amrit yoga are Moola nakshatra falling on Sunday, Shravana nakshatra on Monday, Uttarabhadra on Tuesday, Kritika on Wednesday, Punarvasu on Thursday, Purvaphalguni on Friday and Swati on Saturday. VISHA YOGA: It is considered to be an inauspicious yoga and unsuitable for commencing any important work. Few examples of this particular yoga are Bharni nakshatra falling on Friday, Chitra nakshatra on Monday, Uttarashadha on Tuesday, Dhanishtha on Wednesday, Shatabhisha on Thursday, Rohini on Friday and Revati nakshatra falling on Saturday. GRAHA DASHA Describing the period for which a particular planet is supposed to have its influence on the native, Lord Vishnu told Shiva Sun's dasha continues for six years and brings turbulence, turmoil and agony to the concerned person. Moon's dasha continues for fifteen years and is considered very auspicious as it brings happiness and prosperity. Mars's dasha is considered inauspicious and lasts for eight years. It brings sorrow and misfortune. Mercurys dasha is auspicious and lasts for seventeen years. It brings all kinds of favorable results and is extremely rewarding in every respect. Saturn's dasha lasts for ten years and brings all kinds of inauspicious results to a man. Jupiters dasha continues for nineteen years and is extremely auspicious. Rahu's dasha continues for twelve years and is inauspicious. Venuss dasha lasts for twenty years and is auspicious.' Note: The period of years stated in the above-mentioned graha dashas are at variance from those mentioned by Parashara. Note also the absence of a Ketu dasha. PREDICTIONS BASED ON PHYSICAL TRAITS Dwelling on length about the importance of physical traits and symptoms

apparent in an individual, Lord Vishnu told Shiva, If one sees the following physical traits in a man, he should immediately understand that he is seeing a prospective King : Hands and feet as soft as a Lotus flower, pink nails and no space left between the fingers when kept straight. There is no sign of bulging veins on his hands and palms and they do not sweat excessively. On the contrary, a person having rough feet that appears pale, with prominent veins on them indicates that the concerned person would be poor and miserable. PREDICTING AGE WITH THE HELP OF FOREHEAD LINE Lord Vishnu said, Anybody having three parallel lines on his forehead lives happily for sixty years whereas two parallel lines indicates that he would live till the age of forty years. Only one line on the forehead indicates that he would have a short life but if the line stretches up to both the ears then he lives for a century. If two parallel lines on the forehead stretches up to both the years then the concerned person lives for seventy years while a triple parallel lines reaching both the years indicates that he would live till the age of sixty years. A forehead devoid of any line on it means that the concerned person would live for only forty years while a cobweb of intersecting lines on the forehead indicates that the concerned person is definite to die a premature death. A forehead with a Trident or an Axe mark on it indicates that the concerned person would be prosperous and live for a century. PREDICTING AGE BY PALMISTRY Lord Vishnu, continuing with his narration told Shiva that the age of a person could be predicted by the lines found on his palms If the life line reaches the base between index and middle fingers then the concerned person lives for a century. If the life line is long, clear and without intersections from other lines then the concerned person lives for a hundred years. PREDICTION BASED ON PHYSICAL TRAITS OF WOMEN Lord Vishnu said, A woman having a round face, curly hair and lower portion of her navel slightly slanted towards right, is extremely fortunate not only for herself but also for her whole clan. Similarly, a woman with golden complexion and hands as beautiful and soft as red lotus flower is exceptionally chaste and faithful towards her husband. A woman having dry and unruly hair and also round eyes becomes a widow. A woman whose face is round like a full moon and which radiates like a rising Sun and whose lips are juicy like a wood apple, enjoys a happy and contented life. A woman having a cobweb of lines on her palms is sure to lead a torturous and painful life whereas a palm with few lines indicates that she would be poor. If the lines are pink, then they indicate happiness, prosperity and good health whereas blackish lines indicate that she would live a life of slavery. Any woman having either a wheel, a hook or a earring mark on her hand indicates that she would beget worthy sons and rule like a queen. A woman having hair around her breasts as well as a protruding lower lip spells

doom for her husband. Any woman having a festoon mark on her palms indicates that she would get married in a family superior to her in status. A woman having a round navel with brown hair around it leads a life of slavery despite being born in a royal family. A woman whose little toes as well as big toes of both the legs do not touch the ground while walking spells doom for her husband. In the same manner beautiful eyes indicate good fortune while soft and tender skin indicate a happy married life. VARIOUS NAMES OF 'SHALIGRAM' Describing how a Shaligram is named on the basis of number of Chakra present on it, Lord Vishnu said If there is only one Chakra on the Shaligram idol then it is called 'Sudarshan'. In the same way, Shaligram with two Chakras is known as 'Laxmi Narayan' while that having three Chakras on it is called 'Achyut'. Shaligram with four Chakra on it is known as 'Chaturbhuj', that with five Chakras 'Vasudev'. Similarly, Shaligram with six, seven, eight, ninth, tenth, eleven and twelve Chakras are called 'Pradyumana', 'Sankarshan', 'Purushottam', 'Navavyuha', 'Dashatmak', 'Aniruddha' and Dwi-Dashatmak respectively. Shaligrams with more than twelve Chakras are called infinite. HOW JEWELS ORIGINATED Sutji, once narrated the following tale to assembled sages, which sheds light on the origin of jewels and other precious stones: During ancient times there lived a mighty demon named Bala. Although he had defeated the deities and driven them out from the heaven, yet he had assured them that he would extend fullest cooperation and support in any yagya performed by deities in future. All the deities planned to perform a 'Yagya' in order to regain their lost kingdom. They made all the necessary preparations for the Yagya but were unable to find a person who could offer himself as a 'sacrificial being' -- a ritual without which any yagya is incomplete. Seeing no other option, the worried deities took refuge of 'Balasur' and requested him to offer himself for sacrifice so that the yagya could be accomplished without any hitch. Balasur was bound by his promise so he agreed. This way, the deities were able to accomplish their yagya. But, a strange event coincided with the death of Balasur, which surprised even the deities. The virtuous deed of offering himself as a sacrificial being in the yagya ceremony had amazingly transformed Balasur's corpse into jewels. Deities tried to carry the 'Jewel-body' through the aerial route towards a safer place, but it was fragmented into countless pieces due to the impact of ferocious speed of the wind it had to negotiate. These pieces scattered all over the places -- oceans, rivers, mountains, forests, etc. In course of time, these places got transformed into countless mines of jewels and precious stones such as Vajra (diamond), Muktamani, Indraneel, Sphatik, Prawal, Pushparag and many more.

NAVGRAH MANTRA
Describing the significance of worshipping Navgraha (nine planets), Lord Vishnu told Rudra, One who worships the Navgraha with appropriate rituals attains all the four 'purusharth' (objectives of man's life) dharma (religion), artha (money), kaam (sex) and moksha (salvation). He then went on to give various mantras related with the Navgrahas, which a devotee should chant while worshipping them. SURYA (SUN) CHANDRAMA (MOON) BHAUM (MARS) BUDDH (MERCURY) VRIHASPATI (JUPITER) SHUKRA (VENUS) SHANI (SATURN) -------OM SURYA MURTAYE NAMAH OM HRAM HRIM SAH SURYAY NAMAH OM SOMAY NAMAH OM BHAUMAY NAMAH OM BUDDHAY NAMAH OM VRIHASPATAYE NAMAH OM SHUKRAY NAMAH OM SHANAISHCHARAY NAMAH OM RAHAVE NAMAH OM KETAVE NAMAH

RAHU (DRAGON'S HEAD) -KETU (DRAGON'S TAIL) SHIVA MANTRA --

There are various mantras used in the rituals of Shiva worship. A devotee should begin by worshipping the 'Aasan' (the pedestal) on which the deity is seated. There is a specific mantra for this particular ritual -- OM HRAM SHIVAY NAMAH. Subsequently, a salutation to lord Shiva is made by chanting -- OM SHIVA MURTAYE NAMAH. A special ritual named 'Shadanganyas' is then performed by chanting different mantras associated with the specific parts of the deities' body such as: OM HRAM HRIDAYAY NAMAH, OM HRIM SHIRSE SWAHA, OM HOOM SHIKHAYAI VASHAT, OM HRAIM KAVACHAY HOOM, OM HRAUM NETRA TRAYAY VAUSHAT, OM HRAH ASTRAY PHAT Having accomplished the above mentioned rituals, a devotee should then worship each of the five faces of Shiva by chanting the following mantras

OM HRAM SADDYOJATAY NAMAH OM HRIM VAAMDEVAY NAMAH, OM HOOM AGHORAY NAMAH, OM HRAIM TATPURUSHAY NAMAH, OM HRAUM ISHANAY NAMAH. VISHNU MANTRA While worshipping Lord Vishnu, first of all a devotee should worship the 'Aasan' of the deity by chanting -- OM VASUDEVA AASANAY NAMAH. He should then make salutations to Lord Vishnu by chanting the following mantras: OM VASUDEVAY MURTAYE NAMAH, OM AIM OM NAMO BHAGAVATE VASUDEVAY NAMAH, OM AAM OM NAMO BHAGAVATE SANKARSHANAY NAMAH, OM AIM OM NAMO BHAGAVATE PRADYUMNAY NAMAH, OM AH OM NAMO BHAGAVATE ANIRUDDHAY NAMAH Subsequently, a devotee should worship the various incarnations of Lord Vishnu, his weapons as well as his different mounts by incorporating the rituals of 'Shodashopachar' and by chanting the following mantras OM NARAYANAY NAMAH, OM TATSAD BRAHMANE NAMAH, OM HOOM VISHNAVE NAMAH, OM HRAUM NAMO BHAGAVATE NRISINHAY NAMAH, OM BHUH OM NAMO BHAGAVATE VARAHAY NAMAH, etc. SARASWATI MANTRA A devotee should begin his worship by making salutations to goddess Sarswati by chanting-- OM HRIM SARSWATYAI NAMAH. He should then perform the rituals of 'Shadangnyas' by chanting the following mantras OM HRAM HRIDAYAY NAMAH, OM HRIM SHIRSE SWAHA, OM HOOM SHIKHAYAI VASHAT, OM HRAIM KAVACHAY HOOM, OM HRAUM NETRA TRAYAY VAUSHAT, OM HRAH ASTRAY PHAT

LAXMI MANTRA A devotee desirous of acquiring wealth and prosperity must worship Goddess Laxmi with appropriate rituals. He should begin by making salutations to the goddess by chanting the following mantra: OM SRIM HRIM MAHALAKSHMYAI NAMAH Then follows the rituals of 'Shadangnyas' that is performed by chanting the specific mantras meant for them.
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